Leaders Bayern München notched up another win, but it was by no means easy. Surprising Frankfurt was engaged in the match, and GK Kevin Trapp, who has been excellent all year, was on form again. So the Müncheners pressed but had a hard time breaking down Eintracht. Even after Ribery giving Bayern the lead, Frankfurt remained in the game, and had a few decent chances of their own. In the end however, another Bayern win. This one might come at a cost, as Jerome Boateng left injured, replaced by oldie Daniel Van Buyten. Good effort for Eintracht, but no shock they end up with nada…
Schalke deservedly wins against Bremen, but Werder made it tough. In form Aaron Hunt shocked the Blues with an early goal, and Bremen then hunkered down. Schalke controlled, but was unable to breakthrough. After halftime, the pressure increased, and Schalke showed that they’ve got more in their tank when it’s needed. Neustädter headed in and then youngster Draxler got the winner. Good performance by the hosts, Werder fought hard, but didn’t show enough to deserve a point.
Dortmund showed why they’re champions. Augsburg gave 110%, but were too incompetant. The Neons weren’t in best shape coming off their almost win in Madrid, but were all business. They ruthlessly took their chances. The Fuggers on the other hand were running hard, and created a few chances, but GK Weidenfeller was top notch. So FCA gets kicked in the ass at home and remains in trouble. If you can’t score in the Bundesliga, you’re probably going down, because the other team will hit the net. Efficient win for Dortmund, which at least keeps them within sight of the top.
Freiburg dominated against Hamburg, mainly because Philipp Scharner got his ass toss for repeated fouls. Until that point, the visitors had equal play. HSV hunkered down and defended for an hour, and SCF couldn’t figure out how to break through.
Mainz jumped on Nürnberg early and coasted to victory. This was FCN’s 7th straight loss in Mainz, so maybe it’s not really unexpected. The match was hotly contested, with 10 yellow cards. But the coaches both felt the ref was nuts, Mainz boss Tom Tuchel basically calling him an arrogant SOB. Still, the Mainzers get their fourth home win in a row, and have to be pretty happy. Der Club meanwhile continues to sink into the morass.
Düsseldorf continues to struggle after their good start. Fortuna jumped to an early lead against Hoffenheim, but were pretty shaky. Neither team exhibited much skill or competancy, and defensive lapses lead to both goals. Düsseldorf had a man advantage for 40 minutes when the Hoppers Marvin Compper got tossed. But they were too lame to do much about it.
Some interesting matches on Sunday. Wolfsburg needs a result against in-form Leverkusen. Under the new regime, the VWs have looked somewhat better. Stuttgart should give Hannover a tough match. Who knows what type of match Gladbach will have – hot or cold. All you can say about their hosts Greuther is that they’ll run around a lot.
1. FSV Mainz 05 - 1. FC Nürnberg 2:1 (2:1) 31,390
1:0 N. Müller (12.)
2:0 Ivanschitz (21., Baumgartlinger)
2:1 Nilsson (40., Kiyotake)
Bayern München - Eintracht Frankfurt 2:0 (1:0) 71,000 *
1:0 Ribery (44., Javi Martinez)
2:0 Alaba (77., penalty, Schweinsteiger)
FC Schalke 04 - Werder Bremen 2:1 (0:1) 61,673 *
0:1 Hunt (16., Junuzovic)
1:1 Neustädter (59., Fuchs)
2:1 Draxler (69., J. Jones)
SC Freiburg - Hamburger SV 0:0 (0:0) 24,000 *
FC Augsburg - Borussia Dortmund 1:3 (0:1) 30,660 *
0:1 Reus (8.)
0:2 Lewandowski (51., M. Götze)
0:3 Lewandowski (70., Reus)
1:3 Mölders (81., Ostrzolek)
Fortuna Düsseldorf - 1899 Hoffenheim 1:1 (1:1) 41,200
1:0 Kruse (4.,Garbuschewski)
1:1 Joselu (39., Beck)
Sunday:
VfL Wolfsburg - Bayer Leverkusen -:- (-:-)
VfB Stuttgart - Hannover 96 -:- (-:-)
SpVgg Greuther Fürth - Borussia M'gladbach -:- (-:-)
1 Bayern München 11 10 0 1 32:4 +28 30
2 FC Schalke 04 11 7 2 2 22:12 +10 23
3 Eintracht Frankfurt (N) 11 6 2 3 21:16 +5 20
4 Borussia Dortmund (M, P) 11 5 4 2 23:12 +11 19
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5 Bayer Leverkusen 10 5 3 2 18:14 +4 18
6 1. FSV Mainz 05 11 5 2 4 15:13 +2 17
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7 Hannover 96 10 4 2 4 20:16 +4 14
8 Werder Bremen 11 4 2 5 18:17 +1 14
9 Hamburger SV 11 4 2 5 11:14 -3 14
10 SC Freiburg 11 3 4 4 14:13 +1 13
11 VfB Stuttgart 10 3 4 3 10:15 -5 13
12 Borussia M'gladbach 10 3 4 3 13:19 -6 13
13 1899 Hoffenheim 11 3 3 5 17:23 -6 12
14 Fortuna Düsseldorf (N) 11 2 5 4 10:16 -6 11
15 1. FC Nürnberg 11 3 2 6 9:17 -8 11
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16 VfL Wolfsburg 10 2 2 6 6:17 -11 8
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17 SpVgg Greuther Fürth (N) 10 1 4 5 7:16 -9 7
18 FC Augsburg 11 1 3 7 6:18 -12 6
M = Meister, defending Champion
P = Pokal, defending Cup winner
N = Neuling, newly promoted
1st line: Champions League
2nd line: Europaliga (+ Cup winner)
3rd line: Playoff with 2.Liga 3rd place
4th line: Releghation to 2.Liga